Career and Education Opportunities for Operations Research Analysts in Nashville-Davidson, Tennessee

Nashville-Davidson, Tennessee provides a wide variety of opportunities, both career and educational, for operations research analysts. Currently, 670 people work as operations research analysts in Tennessee. This is expected to grow 10% to 730 people by 2016. This is not quite as good as the national trend for operations research analysts, which sees this job pool growing by about 22.0% over the next eight years. Operations research analysts generally formulate and apply mathematical modeling and other optimizing methods using a computer to develop and interpret information that assists management with decision making, policy formulation, or other managerial functions.

The income of an operations research analyst is about $34 hourly or $70,890 yearly on average in Tennessee. In the U.S. as a whole, their income is about $33 hourly or $69,000 yearly on average. Earnings for operations research analysts are better than earnings in the general category of Statistics Analysis in Tennessee and not quite as good as general Statistics Analysis category earnings nationally. Operations research analysts work in a variety of jobs, including: systems analyst, material liaison, and operations analyst.

There are two schools within twenty-five miles of Nashville-Davidson where you can study to be an operations research analyst, among fifty schools of higher education total in the Nashville-Davidson area. The most common level of education for operations research analysts is a Master's degree. You can expect to spend about six years training to become an operations research analyst if you already have a high school diploma, or just 2 years starting with a Bachelor's degree.

CAREER DESCRIPTION: Operations Research Analyst

Operations Research Analyst video from the State of New Jersey Dept. of Labor and Workforce Development

In general, operations research analysts formulate and apply mathematical modeling and other optimizing methods using a computer to develop and interpret information that assists management with decision making, policy formulation, or other managerial functions. They also may develop related software, service, or products.

Operations research analysts formulate mathematical or simulation models of problems, relating constants and variables and their numerical parameters. They also layout and evaluate experimental operational models in cases where models cannot be developed from existing data. Equally important, operations research analysts have to observe the current system in operation and gather and analyze data related to each of the parts of component problems, using a variety of sources. They are often called upon to specify manipulative or computational methods to be applied to models. They are expected to ready management reports defining and evaluating problems and recommending solutions. Finally, operations research analysts design business methods and procedures, including accounting systems and production schedules.

Every day, operations research analysts are expected to be able to decide how to think about problems involving math. They need to deal with basic arithmetic problems.

It is important for operations research analysts to break systems into their component parts, assign numerical values to each component, and examine the mathematical relationships between them. They are often called upon to design business methods and procedures, including accounting systems and production schedules. Somewhat less frequently, operations research analysts are also expected to design and apply time and cost networks to develop and review large projects.

They also have to be able to analyze data obtained from management to conceptualize and define operational problems and perform validation and testing of models to insure adequacy and reformulate models as needed. And finally, they sometimes have to collaborate with senior managers and decision makers to pinpoint and solve a variety of problems and to explain management objectives.

Like many other jobs, operations research analysts must be able to absorb the factors involved and a problem and provide a well thought out solution and have exceptional integrity.

Similar jobs with educational opportunities in Nashville-Davidson include:

Computer Programmer. Convert project specifications and statements of problems and procedures to detailed logical flow charts for coding into computer language. Develop and write computer programs to store, locate, and retrieve specific documents, data, and information. May program web sites.

EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES: Operations Research Analyst Training

Cumberland University - Lebanon, TN

Cumberland University, One Cumberland Square, Lebanon, TN 37087. Cumberland University is a small university located in Lebanon, Tennessee. It is a private not-for-profit school with primarily 4-year or above programs. It has 1,351 students and an admission rate of 59%. Cumberland University has a bachelor's degree program in Management Science which graduated three students in 2008.

Vanderbilt University - Nashville, TN

Vanderbilt University, 2101 West End Avenue, Nashville, TN 37240. Vanderbilt University is a large university located in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a private not-for-profit school with primarily 4-year or above programs. It has 12,093 students and an admission rate of 25%. Vanderbilt University has a master's degree and a doctor's degree program in Educational Evaluation and Research.

LOCATION INFORMATION: Nashville-Davidson, Tennessee

Nashville-Davidson, Tennessee photo by Kaldari

Nashville-Davidson is located in Williamson County, Tennessee. It has a population of over 596,462, which has grown by 9.3% over the last ten years. The cost of living index in Nashville-Davidson, 86, is well below the national average. New single-family homes in Nashville-Davidson are priced at $196,100 on average, which is well above the state average. In 2008, 1,483 new homes were constructed in Nashville-Davidson, down from 3,070 the previous year.

The three big industries for women in Nashville-Davidson are health care, educational services, and accommodation and food services. For men, it is construction, health care, and professional, scientific, and technical services. The average travel time to work is about 23 minutes. More than 29.7% of Nashville-Davidson residents have a bachelor's degree, which is higher than the state average. The percentage of residents with a graduate degree, 10.0%, is higher than the state average.

The percentage of Nashville-Davidson residents that are affiliated with a religious congregation, 55.2%, is more than both the national and state average. The most common religious groups are the Southern Baptist Convention, the Catholic Church and the United Methodist Church.